Choosing Your Wood Type

One of the most common question we get here at Cedar Springs Recreation is related to Cedar vs Thermowood vs. Hemlock vs white pine and which type of wood is best for your sauna. Each species has its own unique properties and consequently varies in price points. This page is will help you navigate which building material is best for your specific needs.

CLEAR WESTERN RED CEDAR SAUNAS

  

Clear Western Red Cedar - Excellent Quality / Highest Price

Western red cedar is one of the most commercially valuable species. Its exceptional working properties like natural resistance to termite, rot and decay make it an ideal choice for outdoor applications. The appealing dark color, lightweight and soft texture makes it suitable for various applications . Its flexibility and versatility enables its usage in roof shingles, exterior siding, exterior cladding, decking, greenhouses, and saunas. Although there are many grades of red cedar saunas on the market Cedar Springs Recreation has commissioned only the highest clear grade cedar available making out saunas one of the highest quality red cedar saunas on the market.

• Lightweight
• Excellent working properties
• Can be sanded to a smooth satin finish
• Planes and shapes well
• Glues easily
• Has moderate screw and nail holding properties
• Appropriate for outdoor usage
• Beautiful aroma

Canadian Producers Using Clear Cedar:

• Backcountry Recreation 
• Dundalk 

 THERMOWOOD SAUNAS

  

Thermowood -  Very Good Quality / Moderate Price

Thermowood’s Characteristics & Qualities

This process causes chemical and structural changes to occur within the timber, which therefore alter some of its characteristics and qualities. Some of the characteristics and qualities that make Thermowood such a popular species include:

Dimensionally Stable – The intensive heat the wood is exposed to during its production dries out deep into the core, causing all moisture and resin to be removed from the timber. Thermowood therefore doesn’t react to changes in humidity as drastically as untreated wood (the risk of swelling, cracking and shrinkage is decreased), allowing it to retain its shape far better. The wood also doesn’t secrete sap or resin even in high temperatures.

Environmentally Friendly – The softwood used to produce Thermowood originates from well-managed, PEFC-certified forests, and as no chemicals or foreign substances are involved during its production, Thermowood is an environmentally friendly material produced by using only natural methods.

Resistance to Rot and Fungi – Due to the heating process breaking down hemicellulose, the wood doesn’t contain the appropriate nutrients to allow rot and fungi to grow and develop.

Increased Longevity – When wood is treated with heat, its average life span is prolonged meaning your sauna will last a lifetime!

Improved Insulation – Wood that has been heat treated is much more porous than untreated wood, vastly improving its insulating properties.

Its attractive appearance and removal of resin means that the timber is also ideal for interior projects, such as saunas , furniture & flooring.

• Dimensionally Stable 
• Environmentally Friendly
• Resistance to Rot and Fungi
• Increased Longevity
• Improved Insulation

• Non-Toxic 

Canadian Producers Using Imported Thermowood:

• Backcountry Recreation
• Northern Sauna

 WESTERN HEMLOCK

 

Western Hemlock- Good Quality / Moderate/ Low Price

Western hemlock features a fine texture and a straight, uniform grain. This species is seasoned uniformly in dry kilns to improve its strength and stiffness, and to enhance its resistance to decay and insect attack. It offers a wide array of applications. This wood species is primarily known for its even grain, which offers excellent machining properties. It offers a wide array of applications, ranging from moldings, interior woodworking, general construction and traditional saunas.

• Good strength-to-weight ratio
• Excellent machining properties
• Good sanding, staining and painting properties
• Glues satisfactorily
• Turns, planes and shapes well
• Moderate nail- and screw-holding ability
• Polishes beautifully

No Known Canadian Producers Using Hemlock

PINE (SPF) SAUNAS

 

Pine (SPF) - Ok Quality / Lowest Price

The spruce-pine-fir (SPF) group is a mix of Engelmann Spruce, Lodgepole Pine and Subalpine Fir. SPF has a high strength-to-weight ratio and is primarily used for framing in North American housing. Due to its dimensional stability and superior gluing properties, SPF is used extensively in the flat-packed furniture industry. It is also a great choice for modular houses, interior finishing, boxes, pallets, packaging cases and concrete formwork but not the best choice for outdoor application when left untreated. 

 KNOTTY CEDAR SAUNAS

 

Knotty Cedar - Low Quality / Low Cost 

Sometimes referred to as "Rustic" or "Heritage" cedar. Knotty or select tight knot cedar cedar can be used to build saunas but is a much lower quality when compared to clear cedar. This is because of two main reasons, the sauna will expand and contract over time and the knots can come loose and fall out leaving your sauna with unplanned ventilation holes. The knots are also very dense and dense  means heat retention, these dense knots can burn skin and make the sauna seating almost unusable. Knotty cedar is coming more and more common in eastern Canada as access to clear cedar in most parts of the country is getting very hard to come by.

Knotty cedar cost around 60%-70% less than a clear cedar sauna and any finished product should be 60-70% less than Cedar Springs clear cedar barrel sauna. If you are trying to keep costs down, knotty Cedar will work for walls but clear Cedar should be used for benches and backrests at a minimum. What you save in price you lose in longevity, beauty and long lasting enjoyment, 

Producers Using Knotty Cedar or Heritage Cedar

• Alpine Spas (NZ)
• Heavenly Saunas (AU)
• Muskoka Sauna Co. (CA)
• Nootka Saunas (CA)
• Almost Heaven (US)

 Have more questions about wood types? Give us a call or send us an email.